KOTA KINABALU: The Philippines Ambassador to Malaysia His Excellency J Eduardo Malaya has urged the government to take humanitarian approach when taking action against Filipino illegal immigrants, especially children of migrants who were born in Sabah.
“I urge that any measure undertaken (on Filipino illegal immigrants) should be inclusive of humanitarian, remedial and with due regard for the welfare of Filipinos who were born and grew up in Sabah, including children who deserve a better future, if not, a better one than what they have now,” he stressed.
Ambassador Malaya also said when taking action on illegal immigrants, it was vital to deal with individuals on a case to case basis and with a view to ensure that whatever steps taken was humanitarian.
He said related parties needed to note that a lot of Filipino children had lived their whole lives in Sabah, and might have minimal or no connection with the old homeland.
“So I think Filipinos in Sabah should perhaps see if these children could grow up educated and productive, and hence able to contribute to the the local society,” he added when speaking to reporters at the Kota Kinabalu Filipino Community (KK FILCOM) Christmas Dinner and Dance event on Thursday night.
Commenting on the issuance of a special birth certificates to stateless children for education and humanitarian purpose, Malaya said he fully supported the act.